


Teal

by maki_senpai



Category: Haikyuu!!
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Expect OOC, First Meetings, M/M, cmmssn, i literally know nothing about oceanography so pretend i do, iwaizumi is a mermaid, mermaid au
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-12-03
Updated: 2020-12-03
Packaged: 2021-03-10 01:41:37
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,071
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27836218
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/maki_senpai/pseuds/maki_senpai
Summary: “Shh… I saw something.” Oikawa whispered, thinking that any sound louder than that might make him forget what he was focusing on. Despite being underwater, he felt what seemed like a gust of wind, though not feeling the water move around him. It was odd and the thought of it distracted him from the fact that he could no longer hear his crew, their voices becoming like broken records as he swam deeper into the trench.He was cautious, his heart oddly calm.Then he saw his headlight shine on something teal. It was sparkling from the ripples of water surrounding it along with the small source of light. Oikawa swam closer to it until he saw what looked like a fin. The teal colour, starting to look like it had more of a scaly texture, its shine making it seem holographic, taking on different shades of teal blue. Oikawa’s eyes widened as they hiked up and it was as if his world stopped moving as he was faced with the most beautiful person he’s ever seen.
Relationships: Iwaizumi Hajime/Oikawa Tooru
Comments: 3
Kudos: 18
Collections: Iwaoi ♡





	Teal

Realistically, the world has explored more of space than it did the oceans. No one really knows what lies beyond the unknown trenches of the deepest and darkest parts of the water, and if you were to ask Oikawa Tooru, he would probably tell you that it’s possible mermaids are real. He’d always argue that there’s no proof that they do exist, but there’s also no proof of them _not_ existing, followed by a light laugh. 

The concept of the species always intrigued Oikawa ever since he read the story of _The Little Mermaid_. Ever since then, he was so hung up on them and believed that somewhere out there, mermaids existed. How could they not? After all, only about five percent of the ocean has been discovered. 

So he dreamt a fairly realistic dream (to him); dedicating his life to studying the unknown the ocean offered. He sat in his make-shift study, getting his gear ready for the next day’s dive. He wanted to go impossibly deep into the waters and look for _something_. Anything that had yet to be discovered. He wanted to be the first to discover something about the place he recognizes as a second home. It would probably be his most ambitious dive yet, one that he has to journey alone, while all his support will come from the surface. 

He and his crew were in one of the unknown islands that made Rock Islands in Palau. They were set to sail over one of the deepest points of the Pacific, where Oikawa would go as deep as humanly possible. The islands themselves looked mystical and the waters were impossibly blue and the air was as fresh as air could be. It was almost otherworldly, fuelling Oikawa’s beliefs that most people deemed as childish. 

He fell asleep with high hopes that night and woke up feeling livelier than ever. He packed up his things and triple checked that everything was properly placed and that everything was working perfectly. A lot of possibilities of what he might find ran through Oikawa’s head, the one thing he hoped for first and foremost being the most prominent. A knock broke him out of his excitement and turned to the door.

“Yo. You ready?” Makki popped his head into the small room and stared at a giddy Oikawa. He nodded, unable to form proper words to convey just how ready he really is. Makki chuckled, “Let’s go, Prince Eric. Our boat awaits.” 

The two laughed and went to their boat, meeting Matsukawa who went ahead and got the surface and emergency equipment ready. And soon, the three of them set off to start their most ambitious research yet. 

* * *

The water was as cold as Oikawa expected. What he didn’t expect was how dark it became so early on on his dive. 

“Did the sun go out or something?” He joked over his earpiece. 

“Oikawa it’s barely noon.” He heard Mattsun say. 

Oikawa laughed nervously and kept swimming in the darkness that was barely lit by his headlight. 

“It’s really dark…” he thought out loud. 

“What can you see?” Mattsun asked. 

“Darkness and like thirty centimetres in front of me.” 

“Hm, should we pull you back up?” It was Makki on the mic this time. 

Despite his nerves and better judgement, Oikawa persisted. After all, he’s been wanting to do this for as long as he can remember. “No, I’ll be fine. I’ll just take it slow. There’s enough oxygen in my tank anyway.”

“Just let us know. We don’t want a repeat of you screeching into the mic during your first dive.” Makki snickered. 

“SHUT U- what the fuck…”

Oikawa didn’t hear the questioning noises his crewmates were babbling about as the glint of something blue had caught his eye. He swam towards it’s direction, his focus narrowing on it. 

“Oikawa? Did you fuckin’ die?” He heard Makki ask.

“Shh… I saw something.” Oikawa whispered, thinking that any sound louder than that might make him forget what he was focusing on. Despite being underwater, he felt what seemed like a gust of wind, though not feeling the water move around him. It was odd and the thought of it distracted him from the fact that he could no longer hear his crew, their voices becoming like broken records as he swam deeper into the trench. 

He was cautious, his heart oddly calm. 

Then he saw his headlight shine on something teal. It was sparkling from the ripples of water surrounding it along with the small source of light. Oikawa swam closer to it until he saw what looked like a fin. The teal colour, starting to look like it had more of a scaly texture, its shine making it seem holographic, taking on different shades of teal blue. Oikawa’s eyes widened as they hiked up and it was as if his world stopped moving as he was faced with the most beautiful person he’s ever seen. 

He froze where he floated as they stared back at him with curious dark green eyes. They moved and Oikawa’s senses told him to swim away, but he felt like he was anchored in place and watched as he was approached by a being he didn’t think he’d ever see despite his big hope of doing so.

“Are you lost?” The deep voice coming from Oikawa’s new company resonated around him and he felt like he was being serenaded. 

“I… uhm. M-maybe?” He stammered out, inwardly cursing himself for it.

The person raised their brow in question. “Do you need help getting back?”

Oikawa looked around him, but saw nothing but darkness and realized how off course he went. Panic started to course through him and realized he could no longer contact his crewmates. He started frantically pressing buttons on his gear, hoping _something_ would work as he whispered curses and self-loathing comments under his breath. The other simply watched, mostly out of curiosity, but also because they weren’t exactly sure what to do. 

Oikawa froze once more, but his face was filled with fear. His new companion seemed to notice and recognize this and brought his hands up to Oikawa’s shoulder. 

“You’ll be okay.” They simply said. Oikawa raised his head slightly, meeting the eyes that looked like gems one could only find in the deepest parts of the sea. And maybe they were. Then it dawned on him that a _mermaid_ was touching him. He felt like he was dreaming. He would’ve thought he was if it weren’t for the painful panic he was feeling at the moment. 

“I’ll show you the way back. Just hold my hand.” 

Oikawa simply stared and slowly nodded as he felt them take his hand into theirs. He took a moment to _really_ look at the half-person in front of him. Their long, majestic tail that he just knew was strong, like he could tell that this one swims the fastest. The colour of it was something that Oikawa ingrained into his mind, as if it would mean something later on. He didn’t even realize that they were moving already until he looked at their side profile. Their perfectly chiseled features, hair so spiky, it didn’t look like it was under water. The flawless skin that was slightly tanned like they would sit on the beach from time to time, soaking up the sun. 

“Iwaizumi Hajime.” They said.

“Huh?” 

“My name.” 

_Beautiful._ Was the first thought that Oikawa had upon hearing their name. 

“Oikawa Tooru.” He finally said.”

_“Oikawa Tooru…”_ Iwaizumi whispered back, like he was testing out the name. 

“Um… where was I?” Oikawa asked.

“Nowhere important. You won’t find it again though, that’s for sure.” 

“What? Why? Is that where you live?” 

“You’re loud. You were so quiet earlier. And no.” 

“Oh.” 

They swam slowly, taking their time. Not that Oikawa minded. He soon got used to the odd company, but found that they acted like how a normal human would. He learned a lot about Iwaizumi’s personality and things he liked and disliked. Things about them that Oikawa found endearing despite the dismissive tone they took on. He then tried asking them questions about how they lived, where they lived, what they did, and the like. For the most part, Iwaizumi answered, but they were all vague and didn’t really give Oikawa concrete information. But he understood why. They were just trying to protect their home since there must be a reason why they don’t shop up to just anyone. Which led Oikawa to his next question. 

“Why did you let me follow you? Or even approach me for that matter.” 

“I like pretty things.” Iwaizumi said a matter-of-factly, making the other man blush. 

“I… y-you think I’m pretty?”

“Beautiful, actually. I’m having a hard time believing you’re human. I always thought your kind couldn’t look the way you do.”

“You’re very honest aren’t you?” 

“To a fault sometimes.”

Oikawa chuckled and stopped as he looked up, the surface almost coming to full view. Though he realized the sun had been replaced with the moon. He wondered how long it took them to swim up since it felt like they’ve only been talking for minutes, trading information about each other as if they were old friends catching up. 

“I will part with you here.” Iwaizumi announced. A pang of disappointment shot through Oikawa like a bullet. He didn’t want to leave them just yet. 

“Will I see you again?” He asked. 

“Only if I want you to.” 

“ _Do_ you want me to?” 

Iwaizumi stared at Oikawa hard, like they were trying to say something to him with just their eyes. Slowly, they let go of Oikawa’s hand, facing him fully, inching closer to him. They brought their hands up to his helmet, and Oikawa’s eyes widened. 

“Wh-what are y-” He was cut off by the twist of his helmet, eyes trained on the other. 

Soon, he felt the water around his head. His helmet’s off. 

Before he could react, he felt a pair of warm, soft lips on his and strong hands cupping his face. Despite being under water, he felt like he could _breathe_ , making him melt into the sudden kiss, circling his own arms around Iwaizumi’s neck. Oikawa’s heart raced in the best way possible, warmth spreading all over his body like he wasn’t surrounded by the cold of the water. He didn’t even feel like he needed air anymore and fully submitted to the lips of a mermaid, sighing into it contentedly. 

Iwaizumi pulled away, leaning their forehead on Oikawa’s. 

Oikawa shuddered, taking in a deep breath- wait. 

Deep breath?

Breathing?

_Why am I breathing?_

“Did you know, when humans kiss a mermaid, you’re able to breathe underwater for a while?” Iwaizumi stated as if they were reading Oikawa’s mind.

_Oh._

“I’ll see you soon, Oikawa Tooru.”

“Wait! How..? How am I supposed-” _I can talk too?_

“I’ll come find you.” 

And before Oikawa could say anything else, Iwaizumi swam away with such speed that it only took seconds for them to not be in Oikawa’s view anymore. He looked around him only to find miles and miles of water all around him. He wasn’t sure how much longer he could breathe underwater, so he quickly made his way up to the surface. He found himself rather close to the shore he and his crew set off from, seeing their boat docked. He tread the water for a bit, bringing a hand up to his lips, still feeling the ghost of Iwaizumi’s kiss. 

“OIKAWA!? OIKAWA IS THAT YOU?” A booming voice through a megaphone broke Oikawa out of his trance and looked toward the boat, it’s lights turning on. He put his hand up, waving it back and forth and saw the emergency speedboat drop and make its way towards him. But his mind was elsewhere. Dark green eyes, spiky hair, and lips so soft it felt like a dream. 

_“I’ll come find you.”_ Resonated in every fibre of his being. Every bit of him clutching on to the simple words like a promise. And maybe it was. He didn’t even feel himself be lifted up and placed into the speedboat. He looks behind him and swears he could see a glimmer of teal splash in the distant waters. A small smile played at his lips, a spark of new hope igniting in his heart. 

_Come find me, Iwaizumi Hajime._

**Author's Note:**

> for Marie!
> 
> My [Twitter](https://twitter.com/SOUM4KI)


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